Brooke Ch.9

Question 1

amicus curiae

Answer 1

Legal briefs submitted by a “friend of the court” for the purpose of raising additional points of view and presenting information not contained in the briefs of the formal parties.
S: Amicus curiae are brief attempts to influence a court’s decision.

Question 2

appellate court

Answer 2

Court that generally reviews only findings of law made by lower courts.
S: What is the point of appellate court?

Question 3

appellate jurisdiction

Answer 3

The power vested in particular courts to review and/or revise the decision of a lower court.
S: The appellate court is similar to appellate jurisdiction.

Question 4

brief

Answer 4

A document containing the legal written arguments in a case filed with a court by a party prior to a hearing or trial.
S: That document is a brief.

Question 5

constitutional (or article 3) courts

Answer 5

Article III of the Constitution establishes and empowers the judicial branch of the national government. The very first sentence of Article III says: “The judicial power of the United States, shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish.”
S: These are article 3 courts.

Question 6

concurring opinions

Answer 6

a signed opinion in which one or more members agree with the majority view but for different reasons
s: Concurring opinions must be signed opinions.

Question 7

Chisholm v. Georgia

Answer 7

(1793), U.S. Supreme Court case distinguished for at least two reasons: it showed an early intention by the Court to involve itself in political matters concerning both the state and federal governments, and 2 it led to the adoption of the Eleventh Amendment,
S: Chisolm v. Georgia was a case which forbade a citizen of one state from suing another state in a federal court without the consent of the defendant state.

Question 8

Elena Kagen

Answer 8

S: Elena Kagen is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.
She was nominated by President Barack Obama in May 2010, and confirmed by the Senate in August of the same year. She is the fourth woman to serve as a Justice of the Supreme Court. Kagan was born and raised in New York City.

Question 9

eleventh amendment

Answer 9

The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign State.
S: the eleventh amendment is very important to the constitution.

Question 10

federalist No. 78

Answer 10

Federalist No. 78 discusses the power of judicial review. It argues that the federal courts have the duty to determine whether acts of Congress are constitutional and to follow the Constitution when there is inconsistency.
S: In federalist No. 87 Hamilton viewed this as a protection against abuse of power by Congress.

Question 11

John Jay

Answer 11

an American statesman, Patriot, diplomat, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, negotiator and signatory of the Treaty of Paris of 1783, second Governor of New York, and the first Chief Justice of the United States.
S: John Jay was the 1st chief justice.

Question 12

John Marshall

Answer 12

was an American politician who served as the fourth Chief Justice of the United States from 1801 to 1835
S: John Marshall was one of the most influential chief justices.

Question 13

judicial activism

Answer 13

posits judges should use their power broadly to further justice.
S: Explain what Judicial activism is to judges.

Question 14

judicial implementation

Answer 14

How and whether judicial decisions are translated into actual public policies affecting more than the immediate parties to a lawsuit.
S: Judicial implementation differs from judicial review.

Question 15

judicial review

Answer 15

The power of the courts to declare national, state and local laws invalid if they violate the Constitution.

S: Judicial review is important to creating and forming and determining whether laws are constitutional.

Question 16

judiciary act of 1789

Answer 16

Legislative Act (Congress) that established the basic three-tiered structure of the federal government - federal district courts (trial), courts of appeals, and Supreme Court.
s: The judiciary act was put in place in 1789.

Question 17

judicial restraint

Answer 17

posits courts should allow the decisions of other branches of government to stand, even when they offend a judge’s own principles (umpire: call balls and strikes) -
S: Judicial restraint says courts should defer policy making to other branches of government as much as possible.

Question 18

jurisdiction

Answer 18

Authority vested in a particular court to hear and decide the issues in a particular case

s: She does not have the jurisdiction to do that.

Question 19

Legislative Courts

Answer 19

Courts established by Congress for specialized purposes (EX: Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
s: That is a legislative court for congress to use.

Question 20

lame duck

Answer 20

S: In politics, a lame duck is an elected official whose successor has already been elected.
The official is often seen as having less influence with other politicians due to their limited time left in office.

Question 21

Marbury v. Madison (1803)

Answer 21

First assertion of judicial review in finding that a congressional statute (Judiciary Act of 1789) extending Court’s original jurisdiction was unconstitutional
s: I learned about Marbury v. Madison last year.

Question 22

original jurisdiction

Answer 22

S: The original jurisdiction is of courts that hear a case first, usually in a trial.
These courts determine the facts of a case. A.K.A. Trial Courts

Question 23

precedents

Answer 23

A prior judicial decision that serves as a rule for settling subsequent cases of a similar nature
s: State the precedents for this case.

Question 24

plurality opinions

Answer 24

A court opinion that results when a majority of justices agree on a decision in a case but do not agree on the legal basis for the decision.
s: Plurality opinions are the legal position held by most of the justices on the winning side is called plurality opinion.

Question 25

rule of 4

Answer 25

At least 4 justices of the supreme court must vote to consider a case before it can be heard

s: what is the rule of 4?

Question 26

Sandra Day O’Connor

Answer 26

Sandra Day O’Connor is a retired Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, who served from her appointment in 1981 by President Ronald Reagan until her retirement in 2006.
s: Sandra Day O’Connor was the first woman to serve on the Court.

Question 27

senatorial courtesy

Answer 27

Process for selecting federal court judges: Presidents defer selection of district court judges to choice of Senators of their own party who represent the state where the vacancy occurs.
s: what is a senatorial courtesy?

Question 28

solicitor general

Answer 28

the law officer directly below the attorney general in the US Department of Justice, responsible for arguing cases before the US Supreme Court.
s: Solicitor general is responsible for presenting cases to argue.

Question 29

stare decisis

Answer 29

Reliance on past decisions or PRECEDENTS to formulate decisions in new cases (EX: Brown vs. Board of Ed.
s: What is a stare decisis?

Question 30

strict constructionist

Answer 30

(goes with judicial restraint) A strict approach of interpreting the written (NOT implied) word of the Constitution.

s: Strict constructionalists interpret the constitution strictly.

Question 31

trial court

Answer 31

Courts with original jurisdiction

S: She went to a trial court for murder.

Question 32

Whiskey Rebellion

Answer 32

The Whiskey Rebellion was a tax protest in the United States beginning in 1791 and ending in 1794 during the presidency of George Washington, ultimately under the command of American Revolutionary war veteran Major James McFarlane.
s: Whiskey rebellion was formed because of taxes being too high.

Question 33

Writ of Certiorari

Answer 33

A request for the Supreme Court to order up the records from a lower court to review the case
s: Writ of Certiorari are is records from a lower court.